African Waters: Ecologies and Identities in Africa’s Lakes, Rivers and Oceans

April 2nd-3rd 2026 | Reitz Union 3315

The centrality of Africa’s lakes, rivers and seas to the life of its soils, flora, fauna and human societies is widely recognized across a range of academic disciplines, but this centrality is not always reflected in effective interdisciplinary analysis of water’s role in African environment and society. Water has often been invisible or taken for granted in scientific studies focused on land use, conservation, urbanization and conflict, yet its value as a scarce resource across much of the continent has always been appreciated by its peoples. With rising human consumption, climatic variation and increasing aridity in some regions, increasing understanding of water’s myriad roles and meanings in Africa is more urgent than ever.

Much of the African continent is classified as arid or semi-arid lands, in which scarce water resources provide for competing demands from urban settlement, agricultural development, livestock and fisheries, as well as wildlife and conservation. Land management practices have often favored development of artificial water sources to provide additional water and expand suitable habitat for water-dependent species. However, aggregation of wildlife and livestock around water sources can alter animal community dynamics, vegetation structure and productivity, and disease transmission and spread. The complex effects of surface water sources on emergent landscape properties is increasingly a matter of concern, as droughts become more frequent and severe in many regions.

Water bodies have equally been central to the continent’s historical and contemporary political, social and cultural expression. Lakes and rivers provided trading and cultural bridges between peoples but also came to serve as colonial and national borders. Control over finite water resources is a growing focus of actual and potential conflict, while perilous journeys across the open ocean provide hope for some to escape poverty. The cultural importance of water in the African imagination is symbolized by Mami Wata and other water-based female deities.

This conference brings together leading researchers across a wide range of disciplines – in the sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities – to consider the enduring importance and changing meaning of water across Africa.